GoAnimate Studios
'GoAnimate Studios '(formerly known as 'Go!Animate Studios '''from 1988-2013) is an American animation studio based in San Mateo, California. Founded by Brian Sharp and Alvin Hung in 1988, the studio has been owned by GoAnimate inc. since the foundation of this company. GoAnimate creates animated feature films, short films, television programs, and video games. Although their main method was traditional animation, they also used Adobe Flash and Toon Boom Harmony to create their films. It is best known for the franchises ''Comedy World, Stick Figures, Puppet Pals, Joyce and Jane, and Lil' Peepz. History 1988-93: Early years GoAnimate Studios was founded in 1988 as Go!Animate Studios, by Go!Animate inc. CEO Alvin Hung and Brian Sharp, who always wanted to realize their dream of producing an animated feature-length film. In 1991, Eric Nagler has joined the studio as Chief Creative Officer for the company, and started to create his own television series, Comedy World, which aired on CBS from 1992 to 1999, and on Go!Animate Network from 2000 to 2005. One of the main characters in the show Eric, has been the studio's mascot since his introduction in 1990. In 1993, even though the company was pressured in making a video game division of the company, they eventually decided to focus on third-party development of video game adaptations of its franchises by other developers to save money. 1993-2000: Mainstream success and feature films Eventually, Brian Sharp wanted to make a series of his own, Stick Figures, which ran on Fox Kids from 1994 to 2002. The show's main character, Stickguy, was the company's secondary mascot, specifically made for marketing the show. In that same year, the company was hired to produce the Hannah-Barbera series, Joyce and Jane, which ended up airing on Kids' WB/Cartoon Network from 1995 to 2008, and on Go!Animate Network from 2009 to 2015. In 1995, Eric Nagler was negotiating with Sony Pictures Entertainment to possibly make a feature film based on Comedy World. Sony later greenlit the project, with Brian Sharp signing on to write and direct the film. In addition, Universal Pictures signed on to release the film internationally. Comedy World: The Movie was released on July 4, 1997, and received critical acclaim and was a financial success, by grossing over $320 million worldwide, making it the highest grossing animated film of 1997, in front of Hercules. In 1996, during the production of Comedy World: The Movie, Brian Sharp was considering to release a film based on Stick Figures. Tim Burton was hired to direct the live-action scenes, while Don Bluth was hired to direct the animation. Stick Figures was eventually released on January 16, 1998 from 20th Century Fox and Paramount Pictures, and has received mixed to positive reviews and was a financial success, by grossing over $592 million worldwide, making it the third-highest grossing film of 1998, behind Mulan. A year later in December 1999, Comedy World 2: Viva Vacation ''was released as the sequel to ''Comedy World: The Movie. It was not as financially or critically successful as it's predecessor, but was still a success. This urged Eric Nagler to change direction of the production of the show from traditional animation to full flash animation starting in 2000. 2000-08: Switch to flash and decline On December 31, 1999, it was announced that Go!Animate Studios would switch its focus from traditional animation to flash animation starting in January 2000. The switch was successful, with many old workers relieved of their duties, and new workers coming in to produce new feature films. More coming soon! 2009-13: Rebound and new era Coming soon! 2013-16: Renaming and HTML5 Coming soon! 2017-present: Continued resurgence, purchase by Go!Studios and new name Coming soon! Released films Upcoming 3D Re-releases Short films Television series